Thanks for the post. We generally think of normal values in the population as a spectrum that lies under the central portion of the bell curve. This area in the general population lies between 60-100 beats per minute. A heart rate that lies consistantly above or below these numbers fall outside of the normal range but may not be abnormal. An example of this is the lower heart rate that some athletes keep due to conditioning.

Blood pressure is the same. For you, your heart rate lies in the normal range but your systolic blood pressure lies at the upper range of what we consider normal.

When we look at populaitons of people, we know that a systolic blood pressure at that range does increase your long term risk of cardiovascular complications.

My advice would be to undertake some stress reduction techniques and discuss with your physician a lifestyle modification program that incorporated exercise and diet. Withg conditioning, you will notice your heart rate will probably be lower, your blood pressure should lower, and some of that stress and turmoil might not seem so important.

As a sufferer of PVC's, increased heart rate 75-110 bpm ... I have found the key trigger to be "anxiety" and "stress" ... I cannot stress management of these triggers enough yet it seems we do very little to manage them. My cardiologist have said this as well - stress eventually will lead you to heart disease, its a given unless stress and anxiety are contained. Unfortunately, I have done a lousy job of trying to contain these triggers and now am determined to find relaxation techniques etc ...

Your numbers are not the least alarming from my experience and knowledge. Again, the BP could be lower but not considered chronic or to be paniced about. I am told a little weight lose, cutting out salt in your diet will surely drop the BP and hopefully to "more" normal levels not that your levels are so out of line.

Take care and as my cardiologist says- "dont sweat all the small stuff keep living each day ..."

Your heart rate could also be influenced by your stressful job. Do you do any exercise? My heart rate always was in the 80's until I started walking real fast 3 miles every day 25 yrs ago, and my heart rate has been a steady 60 bpm ever since.

About the BP, I know what the new guidelines are telling us, but some doctors, including my cardiologist also told me that the age still makes a difference. Which does not mean that they are going by the old guidelines "100 and your age", but they are not quite as hyper in a person in his fifties or older than if the person was in his 20's or 30's. Matter of fact I just recently read an article written by a doctor that the "elderly" (whatever age that is) have the best brain function if they systolic pressure is around 159 and diastolic pressure 85. He said older people need this pressure for the blood to circulate in their brain better, something about the memory. He also said that he is against bringing the BP under 120 syst. in older people.

But the BP guidelines are not the only ones who came down in numbers, cholesterol and the numbers for sugar diabetes also came down, especially the cholesterol numbers. For the sugar it used to be up to 110 was normal, now they say 90.

If you want my honest opinion I think the drug companies want to sell more drugs, so the numbers get lowered, and the patients get scared the hell out of along the way.

hi i am on atenolol 25 mg..about every other day for tachy and pvc's...the other nite i was awekened and noticed my pulse was 31-34..should i be of concern? i am 28 male..any advice would be great..
thanks
Dave

This balloon ultrasonic ablation procedure is also used for complications that might cause pulmonary stenosis. You sound as if your main problem could be lots of pacs and paroxysmal atrail fibrillation and the area they are targeting could cause pulomonary stenosis that is why the want use the balloon ablation technique. Good luck. I am not that famaliar or have much knowledge regarding this procedure, wish you could post a question.

Thanks for the info, for now i don't think I will do anything. If I go to Cleveland it is out of my pocket ins. won't go there.
So I will have to wait. I have been taking small dose of lorazepam during day to settle my heart down, when acts up never have taken during day, it does seem to help. At least to continue working. I know it is addicting i will be easy does it.

My OOOPS!! I posted a response to you on an earlier thread, which is now full. (Sorry everyone for jumping in on this thread, but it looked like there would be some room.) I posted my response to "Cashiers" instead of "Uptowngirl." I got the two gals from NC mixed up (another senior moment!!)

I will disagree with that doctors statement about 159/85 being a good blood pressure goal for the elderly.

While it IS true that hypotension can lead to confusion and sometimes contribute to falls in the elderly population, the damage to the vessels and the potential for stroke would be of primary and overwhelming concern. Bood pressure is rarely held at a static level--it rises and falls, sometimes dramatically. If a persons' baseline is already 159/85, a sudden rise could easily cause a stroke in an elderly person.

I have very mild "prehypertension" always around 130-135/80-85 or so in a fit, nonsmoking, non drinker 47 y/o. It's never been a concern of my regular doctor. After all, it really falls within "acceptable" guidelines. I had an MRI of my brain a few years ago for something totally unrelated, and my neurologist was shocked to find vascular changes that are usually confined to folks with longstanding hypertension. A check of my urine revealed mild proteinuria. A work up that followed suggested that in MY case, mild hypertension was silently wreaking havoc on my small vessels of at least 2 organ systems, and I am on an ACE inhibitor. A 24 hour BP monitor revealed my BP ranged from a low (sleeping) of 108/52 to (at work) 170/104! These extremes are causing damage, although I generally "average" around 130/80. Goal is to keep me around 110/60 and to prevent wide fluctuations.

"Mild" hypertension can be a slow, silent destroyer. Better to keep it on the lower (though not so low as to cause symptoms) side than on the high side.

I forgot to mention that the article by this doctor meant "older people who are on meds" a BP should not go below 120 syst. He said that healthy people with no BP problems and who have a BP below 120 this was very good. If I find the article again I'll post the website. I first didn't understand it, and had to read it again.

My BP spikes too even though I'm on meds, I've severe white coat syndrome, had several tests done, no damage to any of my organs from the BP, and the Cardiologist told me and my husband "not to worry about my occasional spikes". Yet another Cardiologist in one of his articles said that an occasional spike can cause a stroke. This is what is so confusing, one Cardiologist says this and another says that. I've seen two Cardiologists btw, and both of them agreed that an occasional spike does not harm you. I hate to say this but sometimes when you go for a second opinion, and the other doctor knows that you come for a second opinion sometimes the other doctor agrees with the doctor you saw first because they don't want to cut each other down. I say "some" doctors, I'm sure not all of them. From now on when I go for a second opinion I don't mention that I want a second opinion.

As for the BP in general, in the old days when I grew up I hardly ever heard of somebody having a heart attack or stroke, and when somebody did it was very big news. Now a days with all the meds for BP you hear so often of heart attacks and strokes its not very big news anymore because it happens so often. In my grandmother's time there were no meds for high BP, but they had BP cuffs :) my grandma's BP went to 280 on more than one occasion when she was in her 50's, she died in her sleep at age 83. Don't misunderstand me, I'm NOT saying people with high BP should not take BP meds, I'm taking them myself and don't take it lightly, but there is a lot of hype out there, and not just about BP. A relative of mine always had low BP and a low pulse throughout his life, he died suddenly (at age 70) last April from a stroke (3 weeks in a coma first)when the family asked the doctors why the stroke, all of a sudden it was the "low BP" that caused the blood to do something in his brain, I don't remember the details. It took forever till they got an answer from the neurologists who could not figure out why the stroke.

Hank
thanks for imput.. i have another question:
today i was taking a shower and i could start to feel my heart pounding out of my chest and got alittle "dizzy" and just shacky like something bad was happening..before the shower i did feel some "hard, clicking like pounding from my heart area..i then took my atenolol and went to take my shower about 10-15 minutes later,,,once i got out of the shower i used my at hime blood preasure machine that said 140-95 and a pulse in the 140,s// i then just tried to relax and stay calm..well about 10 minutes later pulse and blood preasure went back to "normal" i guess the atenolol "kicked" in... should i be concerned? i was about to call 911, but last time i had something like this i took the atenolol and was fine 20-30 minutes later... any feedback, suggestions..i am labeled by the doc's as tachy and pvc's with "anxiety" after the event and holter monitor and echo and ekg about 15 months ago..and was then given atenolol...is there something there missing..i have an anxiety book and know alot of it is, but could it be something worse? i had a job interview lined up and had to cancel, baecuse of this..resecheduled for tomrrow..i have no insurance and wont until March..but if i need to go to the Hospital of course would..i have also prior to this episode..been having more PVC AND palpiations..and like posted the other day a low pulse in the middle of the night..i am just sick of this happening, like just as i start to feel good again, BOOM back at it.. its frustrating my wife cause havent been able to get a good stable job and we have a nine month old boy..
ANY ADVICE FROM ALL WOULD BE APPRECITATED..
THANKS
Blessings
Dave

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